Mine-sweeping apparatus



April 27, 1926.

G. E. ELIA MINE SWEEPING APRARATUS Filed Sept. 30;.'1925 Invent or' Giovanni Emanuele Elia,

By his Attorney Patented Apr. 27, 1926.

asse

GIOVANNI EMANUELE ELIA, F ROME, ITALY, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO DALLYN LUCAS, 0F LONDON, ENGLAND.

MINE-SWEEPING APPARATUS.

Application filed September To all whom t may concern.'

Be it known that I, GIOVANNI EMANUELE ELIA, a subject of the King of Italy, residing at 28 Via Po, Rome, Italy, have invent-ed new and useful In'iprovements in or Relating to Min -\,Sweeping Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

rlhis invention relates to mine sweeping apparatus, the object of, the invention being 0 to render it possible to recover or salve the complete mine, i. e., both the flotation chamber and the anchor or sinker.

According to the present invention means are provided for cutting the mooring cable 5 of a submarine mine, so as to allow the flotation chamber to rise to the surface, and simultaneously attaching a float, buoy or other indicating device to the severed portion of the mooring cable which is connected 3 to the sinker. The buoy, by its presence on the surface and its attachment to the mooring rope, thereby enables the anchor or sinker to be subsequently recovered.

To this end a device may be provided to i which position indicating means, such as a buoy or float, are attached, said device also comprising a combined gripper and cutter which has its parts so constructed that, as the mooring rope is severed by the cutter and the flotation chamber is freed, the combined device grips and attaches itself to the portion of the mooring rope which is connected to the sinker.

The aforesaid device, or a plurality of said devices, may be attached to a sweep positioned between a pair of surface vessels and the sweep may be maintained at the desired depth of immersion and the appropriate towing angle by any suitable means, for eX- ample by devices of the so-called kite type. Alternatively, the devicemay be attached to the tow line of a. paravane or the like, or the device n'iay be attached to a tow line and be itself provided with means for maintaining it at a suitable or predetermined depth below the surface or at an approprlate towing angle. Means are provided for releasing the device from the sweep or tow line immediately it has attached itself to the severed mooring rope.

rEhe accompanying drawing shows a coinbined cutting and gripping device made vin accordance with this invention. Figure lziis a front elevation with the float in position 30, 1925. Serial No. 59,681..

and Figure 2 is a side elevation with the float omitted.

The device consists of a central member a having' arms b and c pivoted to it at Z and c, the arm 7) having at its end a cutting device f engaging with a cutting edge g on the central member, while the arm c has at its end a plate z, which engages with another plate z' on the member a, which plates act as guides to prevent any lateral play of the mooring rope. The arms o and c are held in the open position by a bolt y'. ln the lower end of the member a are pulleys Z; 1, and Z Z are pulleys at the ends of the arms .7) and c. A rope m passes round the pulleys Z Z and 7u 7c and the ends of the rope are fastened to one leg n of a slip hook whose other leg o is retained in the member a. The rope by which the device is towed passes through the eye of the slip hook and has upon it a stop which will not pass through the eye, and on the member a are projections p which serve as guides for the tow rope m, the device being maintained with these projections uppermost by a float g having wound thereon a rope r which is secured to the leg n of the slip hook. The float g is held when the device is open by an arm s at the top of the member c and an arni 1f at the end of the arm o, projections on the float f] entering holes in the arms s and t. 'u is a hook on the mem-ber a adapted to engage the mooring rope of a mine when the device is towed through a mine field.

When the device is in operation it takes up a position such that an imaginary line drawn through the shank from top to bottom would approximately coincide with the line taken by the towing line. When the mooring rope of a mine is engaged by the hook o an increasing strain is brought on the rope m until the bolt j which keeps the arms b and c in the open position is broken, when the arms o and o close towards the central member c and clamp the mooring `rope of the mine between the central member and their under surface, while the cutting devices f and g cut the mooring rope setting its flotation chamber adrift. lVhen the arms close down upon the central member the rope m is sla-ckened sufficiently to allow the leg o of the slip hook to pass out of the central member (L thus freeing the device from the tow line The closing of the arms also releases the float 'g which rises to the surface and marks the position of the mine anchor, the projections comin-g, out of the holes in the arms s and t.

A. locking device` may be provided which prevents re-opening of the arms When they have closed in and severed the mooring rope. v v-laving noW particularly described and ascertained the nature of our said invention and in what manner the same is 'to be perl formed, We declare that what We claim is 1. A device 'for rise in mine sweeping, comprising a central member, a float associated' therewith, a hook adapted to engage the mooring rope oi a mine, means for gripping7 said rope, and means for cutting said rope.

2. A device tor use in mine sweeping coinprising'acentral member, a float associated therewith, a hook on the central member, tivo arms pivoted to the central member, means for closing the arms upon the central member when the strain of the rope by which the deviceV is towed reaches a predetermined Yamount, and a cutter 0n one of the arms.

3; fr device as in claim 2 in which the arms'are closed by means of a rope passing roi'md pulleys on the arms and connected to a slip hook actuated by the tow rope.

ildevice as in claim 2 in Which the float is held by one of the arms when in the open position. f

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention have signed my name this' 18th day of September, 1925.

GIOVANN Eli-'IANUELE ELL 

